Page 40 - Lubbock Senior Link Magazine Fall 2019- Online Magazine

Finnis Meeks Join the Navy! See the
inis Meeks is a veteran of
both World War II and the
FKorean War. At age 14, he
knew that he had a calling to
serve in the military. He chose
the Navy, following in the
footsteps of both his brothers.
He remembers the hard times
he and his family experienced
as he was growing up. After
graduating from high school
and then attending one
semester at Texas Tech, he
opted to drop out of school in
order to help his aging father
manage their three farms.
When the draft system was
enacted, Finis reported to El
Paso, where he was ultimately
selected out of 40 men and
sworn into the U.S. Navy.
Finis related his experiences as
an active duty sailor, working
on destroyers as a sonar fleet
radioman. He also served in
several missions involving
aircraft carriers, rescuing
pilots and other seamen who
fell overboard during various
40 Lubbock Senior Link
World!
by Sydney Wenglein, M.S., LMFT-A
“To live with honor means to strive to do your best in all
aspects of your life. It means living with courage, integrity,
purpose and dignity. Above all, living with honor means
pursuing excellence in all that you do and, ultimately,
making the most of your life and time in this world.”
attacks. Some in gratitude for an airshow
of the carriers the servicemen put on for
were longer than him, presented them with 40
two football sheep and a jeweled dagger.
fields! Finis also The group was pleased with
recounted times the dagger, but after herding
when pilots the sheep onto the ship,
would have “because you can’t say no
difficulty trying when the prince is offering”,
to maneuver and the ship’s captain asked over
land a plane on a the PA system if anyone had
rocking ship, aiming for an area experience with butchering
he described as a “shoebox.” sheep, so that they could at
least make some use of them.
He was animated when The captain and his men were
reflecting on all the places he “sheeped out” after living off
had been and almost got to go mutton for the next few weeks.
to, which included Nice, France
and the Equator. Finis recalled that public
transportation in the United
As a sailor, Finis got to States at the time was
experience Gibraltar, Saudi very limited, and flying
Arabia, Hong Kong and Egypt. commercially was not yet
In particular, he remembers common, so traveling by train
the “fantastic cuisines” from was the only real option. That
around the world. meant about a 34-hour trip to
Finis recalled a “strange” Lubbock from Oakland, where
phenomenon he witnessed he completed some of his
while sailing down the canal training.
between Egypt and Saudi
Arabia, where it was possible Finis did experience flight,
working on a DC3 cargo plane.
to “throw a rock to the left and He was not convinced that that
it would land in Saudi Arabia, “antique” of a plane would fly,
and then walk to the right of the but after skimming nearly 50
ship, throw another rock, and it feet of water, miraculously it
would land in Egypt.” lifted off with all the men and
In Saudi Arabia, Finis cargo.
remembers visiting with
the prince, Ibn Saud, who, In 1948, Finis was stationed
briefly in Hong Kong. He